IN THE CLASSROOM:Kids exchange e-mails with our troops

Every week, one or two at a time, the messages land in the e-mail in-boxes in Alison Walske’s classroom:

“We are very careful with our weapons and have to undergo rigorous training before we are even allowed to be issued one. Unfortunately, our jobs are very demanding and we weren’t able to take time off for Thanksgiving, but we did have turkey at the chowhall, which was nice … “

“I get to carry an M-16, but there are a lot of weapons that we use. I will attach a picture of them if I can … “

“I will work for Christmas also, which is unfortunate, but I have ordered some Christmas decorations, and they should be arriving here shortly. I am planning on decorating the workplace so that the rest of the Marines can be reminded of home when they see it … “Shortly before the winter break, Walske’s fifth-graders at Adams Elementary School in Costa Mesa began exchanging e-mails with American forces stationed in Iraq.

The students sit at computers every Friday and send questions overseas about holiday plans, hometowns, favorite foods.

The responses trickle in slowly, but they show a side of Iraq different from the one usually broadcast on the news.

That side is the quiet one. The troops that Walske’s class adopted as pen pals work as computer specialists whose job is to establish Internet connections for U.S. outposts. They carry weapons but rarely see combat. Much of the time, they do their best to lead a normal life.

“They got a Christmas tree and put food cans all over it,” said fifth-grader Joey Sorensen, referring to one of his recent letters back.

Walske got a connection to Iraq through fellow teacher Deborah Ferguson, whose son is serving there. Two or three students are assigned to each soldier in the company.

With the kids having typical fifth-grade concerns and the troops eager to talk about something other than sectarian violence, the exchanges often feel remarkably laid-back.

One student wrote to a sergeant that he was a fan of Chuck E. Cheese’s, and she responded that she often hung out at the restaurant with her little sister and cousins.

Even still, Walske’s students — some of whom have family members in Iraq — said they could detect some of the tension behind the small talk.

“It could be scary, because you could get ambushed by anybody,” said fifth-grader Zack Shafer.